Repurposed Buildings Become Wineries

Wineries are growing throughout the United States.  Although many opt to build new facilities, there are some that find an interesting location and craft their image around it.  Today we’ll take a look at just a few.

An Arkansas winery located in a movie theatre –

(What a show!)

Movie House Winery - Morrilton, Arkansas

The Petit Jean Movie Theatre operated from the 1940’s through the 50’s.  The movie theatre had only one screen and 400 seats. 

Ken and Sherrie Sowers decided the old movie theatre in downtown Morrilton would make a great winery.  They began restoration and opened the Movie House Winery in 2011.

Movie House Winery makes handcrafted wines in small batches and teaches classes for customers to learn how to make their own favorite wines.  The winery also sells home winemaking supplies.

Wines available include Cabernet, Merlot, Tempranillo Malbec, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, a red and a white Muscadine, plus a Raspberry and a Strawberry Zin, Grencache Rose’, and other grape-fruit blends.  There is a fee for wine tasting that is waived with a two-bottle purchase.

Movie House Winery is open Monday through Saturday.  For more information, visit http://www.moviehousewinery.com

A California winery on the National Register of Historic Places

Beringer - St Helena, California

Founded in 1875, Beringer is the oldest winery in Napa Valley.  Winery construction began next to a hill in 1876, and the building was used for the 1877 harvest.  After the grapes had finished fermenting, the juice was pulled down to the ground floor by gravity.  The Beringer brothers had learned how to use gravity flow method in their native Rhine Valley in Germany. Caves were also dug into the winery hillside for caves and tunnels.  This helped keep the wines stored in the wine caves and tunnels a consistent 58 to 60 degrees.

 

Beringer was the first winery in California to offer public tours after the repeal of Prohibition.  The winery remained in the Beringer family until 1971 when it, and the family name, was sold to Nestle.  Foster’s Group of Australia owned the company from 2000 to 2011.  Last year Foster’s Wine Group was split into a separate company known as Treasury Wine Estates.

 

Beringer offers five collections of wines to choose from.  The Private Reserve program has been offered since 1977 and features the Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.  The Modern Heritage collection features classic Napa varietals.  The Knights Valley wines include Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.  They are grown in Sonoma’s Knights Valley vineyard.  The Napa Valley wines are grown in the Napa Valley vineyards.  The California Collection offers a variety of wines considered light and refreshing.

 

Beringer is located on Main Street in St. Helena, California.  The tasting room is open daily and tours are given.  There is a tasting fee, or you may select to pay for a tour that includes some tasting.  For more information, visit http://www.beringer.com.

A Missouri winery located above (and using) a Cave -

(Spelunking for wine!)

Cave Vineyard - Ste. Genevieve, Mo.

Located in southeastern Missouri near Ste. Genevieve, Cave Vineyard got its name from the saltpeter cave located on the property.

Salt Peter Cave just seemed the perfect place to build a winery on top of.    In 1995, Marty and Mary Jo Strussion purchased the property and decided to plant a vineyard and eventually open a winery.  The vineyard now has more than 14 acres of grapes.

The tasting room is located on top of the natural saltpeter cave.  Little is known about the cave except that the name came from early French settlers in the area.  It is believed that it was mined for saltpeter, which was used to make gunpowder. Customers can tour the cave and enjoy a glass of wine in the natural wine cellar.

The Cave Vineyard grows four varieties of grapes from which it makes wine: Chardonel, Traminette, Chambourcin and Cynthiana/Norton.  I could find no mention of a tasting fee on their web site.

Cave Vineyard is located 70 miles south of St Louis.  The winery is open daily.  For more information, visit http://www.cavevineyard.com/

An Ohio winery located in a Church –

("Eat the bread with joy and drink the wine with a merry heart."
Ecclesiastes 9)

South River Vineyard – Geneva, Ohio

Located near Geneva, Ohio is a winery known to many as the "church winery." Housed in a century old church building that originally sat in another Ohio town.

In 2002, Gene Sigel noticed an abandoned Methodist Episcopal Church in nearby Shalersville.  When he asked for permission to photograph, he was told that he could have the church if he would dismantle and move it.  A week later, Sigel was making plans to move the church.  The winery maintained the original church pews, stained glass windows, flooring and interior door.

South River Winery offers wine tasting for a fee.  Varietals wines include Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Dry Riesling, Riesling Reserve, Pinot Grigio and Semillon. Other wines are Exodus, Karma, Trinity, Creation, Temptation and Ice wines.

South River Winery is located just 50 miles east of Cleveland and 20 minutes from Geneva-on-the Lake. The winery is open seven days a week.  Visit http://www.southrivervineyard.com/ for more information.

An Oklahoma winery located in a School –

(Time to do some homework on wine!)

Tidal School Vineyards - Drumright, Oklahoma

Tidal School was built in the 1920's, during Oklahoma's original oil boom.  Constructed by John D. Rockefeller’s oil company, it was built in the Federal Style and used to teach the children of Rockefeller’s local employees.

Tidal School Vineyards and Winery owners spent half a million dollars to renovate and restore the 8,000 sq. ft. historic school building.  The winery opened in April of 2004.

The winery is open Thursday through Sunday, and offers free tastings and tours.  Wines include Cabernet, Merlot, Sangiovese, Chardonnay, White Zin, Oklahoma Sunset, Oklahoma Gold, Oklahoma Sweet, and Impressao.

Tidal School Vineyards and Winery is located two miles south of Drumright and is only a short drive off Route 66.  Events are held.  Visit http://www.tidalschool.com/ for more information.

A Wisconsin winery located in a Mill

(Wild and Wooly!)

Cedar Creek Winery – Cedarburg, Wisconsin

The building began as a woolen mill in the 1860’s.  A 50-pound water wheel generated electricity to run the mill’s twenty-one looms and knitting machines.

In 1972, the mill was purchased by the Pape Family and became the Newberry Winery.  Later the name was changed to Stone Mill Winery.  During the 70’s, the winery was known for its cherry wines.

In 1990, the winery was purchased by the Wollersheim family and was renamed Cedar Creek Winery.  Winemaking began to focus on traditional grape wines that are fermented and aged in the underground limestone cellars.  Wines available include Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Foch, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Vidal, Rose’ and a few fruit blends.

Wine tasting is complimentary except during certain festivals.  Wine tours are offered for a fee.

Cedar Creek Winery is located about 20 miles north of Milwaukee in Cedar Creek, Wisconsin. The winery is open 7 days a week.  For more information, visit http://cedarcreekwinery.com.

Now, go out this weekend and see what interesting wineries you can discover, and let me know what treasures you find!  Enjoy!

~ Joy

Exploring the Russian River Valley

The Russian River Valley AVA (American Viticulture Area) is located in Sonoma County, California.  Designated as an AVA in 1983, the appellation was expanded in 2005, and again last year.

The Russian River Valley (RRV) was named for the first immigrants who settled here. In the 1830’s, Russian settlers began planting grape vines brought from their homeland.  It is believed that the first of these vines were planted at Fort Ross, near the Sonoma coast.  By 1841, the Russian immigrants had moved on to the north, but settlers from all over Europe were making their homes here and tending the grapes.

By 1876, wine production was booming.  Over 500,000 gallons of wine was being produced from 7,000 acres of vines.  By the close of the nineteenth century, the Russian River Valley had four large wineries established – the Santa Rosa Wine Company, Martini and Prati, Korbel Champagne Cellars, and Foppiano Winery.  Over 200 smaller wineries were also in operation here. 

Then came Prohibition and most wineries closed or began selling what they called “jackass brandy.” Jackass brandy was sugar and watered down fermented grape juice that could be mixed together to make wine at home.

By 1933 and the end of Prohibition, less than 50 wineries remained.  Many of these managed to survive the Depression and war years by selling their grapes to bulk wine producers who used them to make cheap jug wines.

It wasn’t until the 1970’s that winemakers in the region started to take their crafting abilities seriously.  Foppiano Vineyards lays claim to being the first winery to use the phrase Russian River on its label in 1973.  In 1983 the region received its AVA designation.

The climate for the region is nearly perfect for grape growing. A cool evening fog settles over the vineyards at night and drops the temperatures to around 40 degrees. Come morning, the fog burns off allowing for warm, sunny days and temperatures in the 80’s.  The volcanic Goldridge loam soil also has an intense and desirable effect on the grapes grown here.

In 2005 the Russian River Valley AVA was expanded another 30,200 acres, giving the region over 15,000 acres of vineyards.  Then in December 2011, the TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau) ruled to allow another 14,044 acres to be included in the boundary lines.  The RRV is now made up of 169,029 acres spread over 150 square miles.

The Russian River Valley is best known for its exceptional Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs.  The Chardonnay grapes are very fruit-forward with bright acidic finishes.  Though Pinot Noir is a difficult grape to grow, the soil here produces a wine that is rich and velvety.

The RRV region harvests over 42% of Chardonnay grapes and almost 30% of Pinot Noir grapes each year.  But these are not the only grapes that do well in this climate.  The region grows 35 different varietals including Zinfandel, Merlot, Cabernet, Syrah, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, and Sauvignon Blanc. 

The Russian River Valley Winegrowers association offers five different driving tours.  They include:

Eastside Road/Old Redwood Highway Winery Tour consists of five wineries including one of the oldest, Foppiano Vineyards, and the first RRV winery to produce a single vineyard Pinot Noir - Davis Bynum Wines.

River Road West Winery Tour   includes ten wineries.  Korbel is known internationally for its California Champaign, produced for over 125 years, Sonoma-Cutrer focuses on Chardonnay exclusively, and the Joseph Swan Winery offers seven different grape varietals to try.

Rural Highway 116 Winery Tour will take you to 13 wineries.  The Freestone Vineyards is known for world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Kozlowski Farms, offering wine and specialty foods, was one of the first California farms to be certified organic in the 80’s, and Merry Edwards Winery, owned by one of California’s first women winemakers.

 

Healdsburg Area Winery Tour is made up of three wineries.  Davis Family Vineyards has Zinfandel crafted from 125 year old vines, Holdredge Wines offers limited production of Pinot Noirs, and if you plan a trip around harvest –time, you might get to watch as La Crema hand-harvest their Chardonnay and Pinot grapes.

Westside Road Winery Tour consists of four wineries, including Porter Creek, who practices sustainable vineyard management, Artista Winery which produces small lots of Pinot Noir, Moshin Vineyards specializes in six varietals of grape wines, and the Gary Farrell Winery that offers handcrafted Pinot, Chard and Zinfandel wines.

There are over 100 wineries located in the RRV, and another 170 grape growers.  For more information visit http://rrvw.org/.  For a tour book that highlights the region's wineries, food and fun, go to http://rrvw.org/russian-river-valley-guide/. With the gorgeous vistas, the friendly wineries, and the fabulous wines, you may not want to leave.  Enjoy!

~ Joy